The Secret Place: 21 Day DevotionalSample

REPENTANCE FROM IDOLATRY

Isaiah 44:14-15

This scripture in Isaiah talks about a form of idol worship that stems from pride. In our attempt to provide for ourselves we can easily fall into idolatry. The scripture says this man cuts down trees for wood, for himself. He lets it grow strong, for himself. He burns it for warmth, for himself. He uses the fire to make bread, for himself. Notice the trend here? We need to be extra vigilant when ‘self’ is always the motive. The pride that comes with a self-made or selfsufficient mindset is idolatry. In this man’s self sufficiency, he used the same resources that he believes has provided for himself to make a god to worship. He never acknowledges the giver of the resources. Sometimes we can be like this. We may even acknowledge God as the giver of our resources with our words but neglect ascribing glory to God with our actions. There is no point of saying God is my provider but our actions prioritise the provisions over the Provider. What could this look like practically? We busy ourselves with the work of our hands because we have bills to pay but we sit on our hands when it comes to God’s work. We give more dedication to jobs/businesses because that provides our monthly check but we show a fraction of that dedication to the things of God. Ask yourself a sincere question. Who is providing for you? Who is providing for your family? Who is causing you to succeed? God wants us to worship Him. It is also possible that we are so busy that we forget that we need to worship Him.

Mary and Martha’s story highlights this aptly. Martha was serving Jesus and the disciples but she was too busy to worship and appreciate the God she was serving. In our lives, that wood may represent anything that you are taking the credit for. Anything that takes you away from acknowledging and prioritising God. If you are not worshipping God (acknowledging God with your actions), you are worshipping wood. It is idol worship. Matthew 6:24 (NIV) puts it like this “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” What have you made a god to worship? You may even find that you are serving God at church but outside the walls of the building, serving wood in other aspects of your life. In Jeremiah 22:8-9, this is what God says about those who worship idols. “People from many nations will pass by this city and will ask one another, ‘Why has the Lord done such a thing to this great city?’ And the answer will be: ‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of the Lord their God and have worshipped and served other gods.” This year, let us not fall into the snare of worshipping self made gods.

Repent from idol worship.